Toyota Lexus Named Best Overall Vehicle for 2010

Consumer Reports has just published its 2010 list of highest-rated vehicles in ten popular categories. For a full description of the automobiles taking the honors this year, go to CCNMoney.com.

Best overall vehicle

Despite Toyota’s recent recall disasters, the influential magazine has named the Toyota Lexus 460L best overall vehicle. With gas mileage of 24 on the highway and 16 in the city, the full-size luxury sedan scored 99 on Consumer Report’s 100-point scale. The $70,925 price tag means that you’ll probably need a loan to buy one of these cars, even if you have plenty of cash now for a down payment.

Best family sedan

Top honors in the family sedan category went to the Nissan Altima which may be good news if your payday cash doesn’t always flow like wine . The Altima carries a manageable price tag, somewhere in the range of $19,900 – $29,600, and gets reasonable gas mileage, too (32 hwy, 23 city).

Best small sedan

The Hyundai Elantra SE took the award for best small sedan. Priced at a mere $17,845 that plenty of people could finance with just a small loan, the Elantra gets decent gas mileage (34 hwy, 26 city) and comes equipped with electronic stability control, a proven life-saving feature not available on many other small cars.

Best sporty car

The Volkswagen GTI, a turbocharged version of the VW Golf hatchback was named best sporty car. Without completely sacrificing gas mileage (31 Hwy, 21 City) and without a price so high that you need your own personal money lender ($23,465-$24,070), the four-cylinder engine offers 200-horsepower and performance –oriented suspension.

Best small SUV

The Subaru Forester came out on top in this category, with fairly impressive fuel economy (27 hwy, 20 city) and a moderate price range of $20,295 – $28,495. Consumer Reports temporarily suspended its recommendation for the Toyota Rav4 as its top choice in this category following the manufacturer’s recall and stop-sale order, but it’s back now and affordable with the help of a good loan company.

Best family SUV

With its roomy interior, easy ride and responsive handling, the Chevrolet Traverse took the prize for best family SUV. With a fairly steep price range of $29,224 to $39,985, the Traverse offers less-than-optimum gas mileage (24 hwy, 17 city) and may not be the best automobile choice for if you already need money now.

Best green car

Not surprisingly, for the seventh year in a row the Toyota Prius took the prize in the green car category. The price of the new redesigned version remains reasonable $21,400 – $28,070 and at 48 hwy, 51 city its gas mileage is hard to beat. Described by the magazine as safe, reliable, and easy to handle, sales of the Prius were not interrupted by the recent recall, allowing it to remain on the Consumer Reports top-10 list. It shouldn’t take credit counseling to figure out that this car makes good financial sense.

Best sports sedan

The Nissan Infiniti G took the title in the sports sedan category the fourth year in a row. Priced between $33,250 and $40,400, the Infiniti G offers agility and luxury with plenty of power and gas mileage of 27 hwy/19 city. Not a bad choice, especially if you qualify for low interest loans.

Best family hauler

Yes, “family hauler” really is the name given to this category, and the winner is a microvan, the Mazda5. With gas mileage of 28 on the highway and 22 in the city, this small and maneuverable family hauler (I just really like saying that again) is economically priced between $17,995 and $23,005. If you’re already a candidate for cheap payday loans and need to buy a car, this is a model to consider.

Best pickup

Stripped down at $20,850 or souped up at $41,775 20, the Chevrolet Silverado offers the fuel inefficiency typical of even less worthy pickups (20 hwy, 15 city), plus optional interior comforts and a measure of dependability. If you’re in the market for a pickup but find yourself short of cash today, a basic version of the Silverado may be just the ticket to debt survival.